Easing The Transition to College: Helping Students Become Self-Regulated Learners

1. Easing The Transition to College: Helping Students Become Self-Regulated Learners Debra Dunlap Runshe Instructional Development Specialist University Information Technology Services - Learning Technologies Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis

2. Myth or Reality?? Unprepared? “The number of academically unprepared and at-risk students enrolling in colleges and universities is increasing.” (Gabriel, 2008)

3. True or false? ACT testing results showed that 49% of high school graduates do not have the reading skills needed for college success. At 4-year colleges, 25% of first-time students require at least 1 year of remedial courses. Once admitted to college, 75 % of the students who have to take at least one remedial class will not go on to obtain a degree or certificate within 8 years of enrollment. (Adelman, 2004; Horn & Berger, 2004; Kuh, Kinzie, Schuh, Whitt, & Associates, 2005)

4. K – W - L

5. Why are they unprepared?

6. Webinar Objectives By the end of the webinar, participants will: • describe the characteristics of self-regulated learners. • explore some of the theories behind self-regulated learning. • articulate why reflecting on one’s own learning and progressing toward goal completion leads to self-regulation. • identify effective instructional methods, strategies and techniques that can be incorporated into their classroom that will lead to self-regulated learning.

7. What is self-regulation of learning? Self-regulation of learning refers to learners’ beliefs about their capability to engage in appropriate actions, thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in order to pursue valuable academic goals while self-monitoring and self-reflecting on their progress toward goal completion. (Zimmerman, 2000)

8. Behavioral Research → Self-control An outgrowth of behavioral research … self-control • Self-monitoring • Self-instruction • Self-evaluation • Self-correction • Self-reinforcement (Schunk, 2006)

9. Cognitive Research → Internal States Behavioral research was not enough, cognitive research emerged considering: • Thoughts • Beliefs • Emotions (Schunk, 2006)

10. Motivation and self-regulation Motivation and cognitive theories of self regulation • Information processing • Social constructivist • Social cognitive (Schunk, 2006)

11. Information Processing Winne and Hadwin’s four phases: • Learners process information • Learners set goals and a plan • Learners apply plan • Learners adapt plan … teacher’s directions … feedback (Schunk, 2006)

12. Social Constructivist Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (ZPD): the amount of learning possible by a student given the proper instructional conditions … interactions with adults (Schunk, 2006)

13. Social Cognitive Bandura’s theory: • Self-regulation of learning is a pivotal component of any major academic endeavor. • Self-regulation affects motivation, emotions, selection of strategies, and effort regulation and leads to increases in self-efficacy and improved academic achievement. (Schunk, 2006; Schunk & Zimmerman, 2008)

14. Self-regulated Learning Model Zimmerman’s three-phase model: • Forethought • Performance • Self-reflection (Zimmerman, 2000; Schunk, 2006; Schunk & Zimmerman, 2008)

15. Motivation and Regulatory Processes Learners’ future time perspective, an individual’s perception of how far psychological distance they are from reaching future goals, has been found to be a function of self-regulation. Students with adaptive future time perspectives highly value future academic outcomes in spite of highly attractive immediate rewards. They are able to delay gratification for anticipated valuable rewards attainable only in the future. (Zimmerman, 2000)

16. Motivation and Regulatory Processes Self-regulated learners exercise effort regulation, the learners’ intentions to put forth resources, energy, and time to secure completion of important academic tasks. Skilled self-regulated learners can generate extraordinary motivational beliefs in order to attain their goals. They are able to remain task-focused and can evaluate their progress toward goal completion. (Pintrich, 1995)

17. How do we promote self-regulated learning?

18. ePortfolios Chickering & Gamson’s Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education Classroom Assessment Techniques McKeachie’s Teaching Tips Goal Setting Study Skills Cooperative Learning

19. Zimmerman’s Forethought Phase Task analysis • Goal setting • Strategic planning Self-motivation • Self-efficacy • Outcome expectations • Intrinsic interest / value • Learning goal orientation (Zimmerman, 2000)

20. Seven Principles for Good Practice • Encourages student-faculty contact • Develops reciprocity and cooperation among students • Uses active learning techniques • Gives prompt feedback • Emphasizes time on task • Communicates high expectations • Respects diverse talents and ways of learning (Chickering & Gamson, 1987)

21. Principle: Student-Faculty Contact Suggestions: • Encourage classroom interaction • Establish rapport with students • Provide personalized feedback • Increase accessibility • Express interest in students • Participate in co-curricular activities

22. The First Week of Class Begin with a detailed and explicit syllabus. Learn your students’ names. Strategies to accomplish this: • Seating chart, student choice • Name plates • Office hours “interviews” Pictures (Gabriel, 2008)

23. Building Community Find someone who___???

24. Principle: Cooperation Among Students Suggestions: Plan cooperative learning activities, such as: • Group projects, presentations, or papers • Study groups • Peer tutoring • Peer evaluation Foster collaborative rather than competitive or independent environments.

25. Essentials of Cooperative Learning • Positive interdependence • Individual accountability and personal responsibility • Social skills • Group processing (Johnson & Johnson, 2003)

26. Applications of Cooperative Learning • Peer review • Checking homework • Test preparation and review • Learning new content • Presentations and projects • Labs and experiments • Drill and review (Johnson & Johnson, 2003)

27. Strategies for Cooperative Learning • Matching group size to activity • Informal activity (2-4 students) • Formal activity (4-6 students) • Setting intermittent deadlines and offer continual feedback • Including self and peer assessment • Assign differentiated group or individual grades • Maintaining the groups for the duration of the semester • Avoiding forming groups which have only one woman or one minority (Johnson & Johnson, 2003; Millis & Cottrell, 1998)

28. Principle 3: Active Learning • Suggestions: • Interactive lectures • Discussions and debates • Student presentations • Collaborative writing exercises • Problem-based learning activities • Case studies • Role playing • Simulations and games

29. Easy to Implement Techniques Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs) simple, ungraded activities that can: • provide feedback about how your students are doing • help your students monitor their own learning • focus your students’ attention on course content through reflection, writing, and speaking • allow you to punctuate your lecture with learning activities (Angelo & Cross, 1993)

30. Examples of Low-Preparation CATs • Background Knowledge Probe • Punctuated Lectures • Minute Paper • The Muddiest Point • Think – Pair – Share • Complete a Sentence Starter (Angelo & Cross, 1993)

31. Background Knowledge Probe For students, it highlights key information to be studied, offering a preview of material to come and/or a review of prior knowledge. For teachers, it helps determine the best starting point and the most appropriate level for a lesson. For both, it can be used for either pre- or post-lesson assessment of learning. (Angelo & Cross, 1993)

32. Background Knowledge Probe • “Signs up” • Place yourself along the continuum • Survey/inventory • Pro-Con Grid (Angelo & Cross, 1993)

33. One Minute Paper What are the three most important ideas we covered during the webinar today? (Angelo & Cross, 1993)

34. Muddiest Point What about self-regulated learning and classroom assessment techniques are still confusing to you? (Angelo & Cross, 1993)

35. Complete a Sentence Starter Self-regulated learning involves . . . (Angelo & Cross, 1993)

36. Principle: Time on Task Suggestions: • Engage learners • Develop goals • Use class time wisely • Provide study suggestions • Post module / weekly checklists • Communicate clear expectations • Break down learning into small portions • Encourage students to develop time management skills

37. The Science of Learning Teach for long term retention and transfer: • Practice and retrieval • Vary the conditions • “Re-represent” information in an alternative format • Construct knowledge based upon prior knowledge and experience • Chunk information • Motivation (Halpern & Hakel, 2003)

38. Principle: Prompt Feedback Suggestions: Provide feedback that is: • Timely • Directive • Specific • Appropriate Use peer review when appropriate

39. Principle: High Expectations Suggestions: • Foster supportive climate • Provide clear expectations of performance • Offer alternative assignments to meet individual students’ needs and interests • Provide models of outstanding student work • Hold yourself to the same standard of excellence • Offer immediate feedback • Tolerate mistakes • Celebrate success

40. Zimmerman’s Performance Phase Self-control • Imagery • Self-instruction • Attention focusing • Task strategies Self-observation • Self-recording • Self-experimentation (Zimmerman, 2000)

41. Principle: Diverse Talents Suggestions: • Accommodate diversity • Teach to different learning preferences

42. Felder-Silverman Model Students learn about their learning preferences and strategies that will assist them in being successful. Their preferences fall on a continuum between: • active or reflective • sensing or intuitive • visual or verbal • sequential or global Felder’s Online Resources: http://www4.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/Learning_Styles.html

43. Visual or Verbal Learners How can visual learners help themselves? If you are a visual learner, try to find diagrams, sketches, schematics, photographs, flow charts, or any other visual representation of course material that is predominantly verbal. Ask your instructor, consult reference books, and see if any videotapes or CD-ROM displays of the course material are available. Prepare a concept map by listing key points, enclosing them in boxes or circles, and drawing lines with arrows between concepts to show connections. Color-code your notes with a highlighter so that everything relating to one topic is the same color. How can verbal learners help themselves? Write summaries or outlines of course material in your own words. Working in groups can be particularly effective: you gain understanding of material by hearing classmates' explanations and you learn even more when you do the explaining.

44. Concept Maps • Brainstorm terms and short phrases related to the topic. • Create a shape for your central topic. • Create levels of association with shapes and lines. • Insert logical connectives on the lines connecting the concepts (such as includes, excludes, causes, results in, predicts, contradicts, supports).

45. Concept Maps Central Theme Subtopic Detail Subtopic Subtopic

46. Concept Maps Branches of the Government Legislative Senate Congress Executive Judicial House of Representatives Supreme Court President Vice President

47. Study Skills “Many students have never been exposed to different ways to approach studying or even to the idea that there are different ways to study … We can help students learn about different strategies and when to use them.” ~Marilla Svinicki Study Guides and Strategies: http://studygs.net/

48. How do resources intersect? • Learner as a resource • alone time • Tangible resources • reading the text • textbook problems • course pack problems • podcasts Asked students: Do you use these resources? Are they helpful? How helpful? • Faculty as a resource • attend lecture • open discussion • GSI as a resource • office hours • in-lab discussion • recitation • Peers as a resource • institutional groups • self-formed group. (Coppola, 2012)

49. Zimmerman’s Self-reflection Phase Self-judgment • Self-evaluation • Casual attribution Self-reaction • Self-satisfaction / affect • Adaptive / defensive (Zimmerman, 2000)

50. “Folio” Thinking “’Folio’ thinking enables students to become aware of, document, and track their learning and develop an integrated, coherent picture of their personal learning experiences from both inside and outside of the classroom." ~Helen Chen